1500 BC Aryans

The Aryans came from an area of Central Asia near the Caucasus Mountains, moving southeast and eventually taking over the entire Indus Valley by the year 1500 BC. They spoke a language called Sanskrit, which became the basis of many modern South Asian language.

There is little archaeological evidence showing how India's Aryan people lived. However, they did leave behind two major collections of literature: 1) Mahabharata, and 2) Ramayana. These were two epic poems telling exciting stories of wards, kings, and heroes.

Much of what we know about them today also came from sacred writing called the Vedas. The Vedas are mostly religious texts, but they also described famous victories of the Aryans as they invaded India. The religion of the ancient Aryans, known as Brahmanism, was polytheistic and heavily influenced the later development of Hinduism. Both religions have much in common and share many rituals.

The Aryans lived in ganas, which means "collections." A gana was made up of several families. Each gana had its own territory, ruled by a warrior chief called a raja or king.

The Aryan civilization had a large impact on modern-day India society. For example, one Aryan influence on modern-day India was the development of the caste system. A caste is a social group in which people are born and they cannot change. The caste system began because the Aryans had four social classes, which they called varnas. People were divided based on wealth and occupation. The four classes are below:

1. Brahmana (Brahmin): priests and the educated

2. Kshatriya: rulers and warriors

3. Vaishya: farmers, artisans, and merchants

4. Sudra: laborers and servants

5. Dalits "Untouchables": outside of a caste and considered the lowest members of society.